The killer of headmaster Philip Lawrence wore his murder conviction as a "badge
of honour" and used it as a "weapon" in a cashpoint robbery,
a court has heard.

Learco Chindamo, 30, used his infamy to intimidate his victim David Sexton during the robbery in North London, his trial was told yesterday.

He was backed up in his demands for money by his friend Gregory Jananto, 32, who brandished a bottle at the terrified man, and bragged he had "stabbed up" a witness in Chindamo's murder trial.

Chindamo, who was just 15 when he stabbed married father-of-four Mr Lawrence through the heart outside St George's School in Maida Vale.

He had been released from prison just four months before the alleged cashpoint robbery last November after serving 14 years of his life sentence.

On his release that he said he would spend the rest of his life “atoning” for his crime. Chindamo, who lived in Italy as a child, was only allowed to stay in Britain after successfully arguing that to deport him would infringe his human rights.

The court heard that Mr Sexton, 20, had just withdrawn £20 from Sainsbury's cashpoint in Chalk Farm Road, North London, in the early hours of November 13 last year when he first noticed three men stood behind him.

Oliver Glasgow, prosecuting, said: "One of the three men, Learco Chindamo, asked him if he knew who he was.

"David Sexton had no idea at the time, but Learco Chindamo was quick to point out that he had been responsible for the murder of Philip Lawrence, the headmaster in Maida Vale.

"Learco Chindamo demanded compensation from David Sexton for disrespecting him."

Chindamo, Jananto and Saeed Akhtar, 32, all surrounded Mr Sexton and "threatened and intimidated him" until he handed over the cash and they walked away, the jury at Blackfriars Crown Court heard.

The three defendants, all of whom deny robbery, had already approached other members of the cashpoint before their victim arrived, it was said.

Mr Glasgow said: "These claims of apparent disrespect were, of course, no more than a cover for Learco Chindamo to brazenly frighten David Sexton into giving him money ...

"Learco Chindamo, who appeared to regard his conviction as a badge of honour, had tried to use his previous conviction as a means of frightening David Sexton.

"When that did not prove immediately effective Jananto and Akhtar had duly taken their turn into threatening and intimidating him into parting with his money and frightening his friends from coming to his aid."

Mr Sexton had been out with work colleagues drinking in Marble Arch and Kilburn before going to Camden, it was said.

He had planned to withdraw £100 from the cashpoint but on seeing Chindamo who was "immediately hostile and aggressive" he changed his mind and took out just £20.

Mr Glasgow said: "As soon as David Sexton turned to look at him, Chindamo said: 'Do you remember the head teacher in Maida Vale?'

"This was quite plainly a reference to Chindamo's previous conviction for the murder of Philip Lawrence back in 1995.

"The only reason for disclosing such a fact to a total stranger must have been to frighten him, which is, of course, exactly what happened."

He was surrounded, goaded and threatened by the three friends with Jananto being 'extremely threatening an abusive' and holding a bottle as if ready to use it as a weapon, it was said.

Mr Sexton's friend Seamus Delahunty witnessed the attack and recognised him as the murderer of Philip Lawrence following his release from prison and the publicity surrounding it just months earlier.

Akhtar walked toward Mr Delahunty with his fists clenched and prevented him coming to the aid of his friend, it was said.